Heraldic Arts and Sciences: Beyond the Banner and Shield. Part 12, Dec 2005. Last Edit: 15 Dec 2005

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Instructional Sites

How to make a slab pot: Simple instructions on ceramic slab construction, the sort of construction I meant to use for this project.

Other Sites, Supporting Documents, and References

Scribal Tools: Scroll down to the bottom section to see a few more pictures of medieval water trays and Master RanthulfR's take on making and using them. You can also see an example of his water tray in use here.

Heraldic Arts and Sciences:
Beyond the Banner and Shield
Part 12: A Solvent Tray

Painters of all sorts need to clean their brushes and make their paints workable; in essence, a solvent. The solvent may be water, turpentine, or something else, depending on the type of paint. I usually stick to water-based paints like watercolor, gouache, egg tempera, acrylics, and so forth. Thus, for me, water is the only solvent I generally need.

I wanted to add the medieval solvent try to my painter's kit, believing that it would increase the medieval experience for me and improve the air of authenticity I project when I work in public. Great theory, huh?

Alas, this is the story of a project gone wrong.

I'd had good success in working with clay a gazillion years ago in junior high art class, and I figured I retained enough memory of the process to be able to make a water tray. Some time ago, I'd purchased the four-pound package of Laguna Ovencraft Clay, a terra cotta colored, organic polymer clay that possessed the interesting quality of being able to be worked in the same way as the more usual pottery/ceramic type of clay. This is not usual in polymer clays; most of them require some serious kneading to get them ready, and I know of no one who has successfully thrown them on a potter's wheel. I'd made a couple of flat stone works (like a viking scroll) and some medallions from this clay, and figured it wouldn't be too much more work to make a tray with a slab technique.

The materials I used were:

Laguna Ovencraft Clay
Rolling pin
Aluminum foil
Pen
Knife
Paint brushes
Yellow and Black acrylic craft paints.
An oven!

Unfortunately, I misjudged the amount of clay I still had, and what I did have was too wet. I was pretty impatient to get through the project, so I did not wait for the clay to dry out a bit. Oops.

I placed tin foil on my rolling surface to protect it, then rolled the clay to a flat slab, cutting away the worst of the uneven edges with a knife. It was then that I noticed that the clay was really too wet for immediate work, and I really should have cut the slabs and set the project aside. Furthermore, the clay slab was very thin, which contributed to the over-flexibility of the slabs.

No Matter. I molded it to shape with my hands, pinching the corners together and then smoothing them down as best I could. I carved the water-bouget badge into each side, and then set the try to dry over the weekend. It had to be placed on its side, as the foot was too weak to support the tray. Oops. Because of this, at some point in the drying process, the bed of the tray moved out of position just enough to prevent the tray from resting flat when set up properly.

When the tray was dry, I baked it per instructions, and when it was cool, I painted the badge in with acrylic paints.

I need to make a new tray; I'll give myself sufficient time next time. I'm also thinking of making one out of ceramic tiles and caulk, maybe decorating it as a mosaic. If I use the Ovencraft clay again, I will be certain to use a sealant on it before exposing it to water.

This is a detail from a miniature in Boccaccio's De Claris Mulieribus, France, 1402, showing a water (or other solvent) tray in use. This was what I was trying to accomplish with this project.

Faint but discernible, the pattern of the water-bouget has been inscribed into the clay before baking. I used a plain old ball-point pen to inscribe the pattern. Now, it's ready to paint. The inscribed lines will help keep the paint where it belongs.